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Date:   Tue, 17 May 2022 13:58:36 -0700
From:   Jakub Kicinski <kuba@kernel.org>
To:     Maxime Chevallier <maxime.chevallier@bootlin.com>
Cc:     davem@davemloft.net, Rob Herring <robh+dt@kernel.org>,
        netdev@vger.kernel.org, linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org,
        devicetree@vger.kernel.org, thomas.petazzoni@bootlin.com,
        Andrew Lunn <andrew@lunn.ch>,
        Florian Fainelli <f.fainelli@gmail.com>,
        Heiner Kallweit <hkallweit1@gmail.com>,
        Russell King <linux@armlinux.org.uk>,
        linux-arm-kernel@lists.infradead.org,
        Vladimir Oltean <vladimir.oltean@nxp.com>,
        Luka Perkov <luka.perkov@sartura.hr>,
        Robert Marko <robert.marko@sartura.hr>
Subject: Re: [PATCH net-next v2 2/5] net: dsa: add out-of-band tagging
 protocol
Message-ID: <20220517135836.4455e77b@kernel.org>
In-Reply-To: <20220517085355.4fab54b3@pc-20.home>
References: <20220514150656.122108-1-maxime.chevallier@bootlin.com>
        <20220514150656.122108-3-maxime.chevallier@bootlin.com>
        <20220516122048.70e238a2@kernel.org>
        <20220517085355.4fab54b3@pc-20.home>
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On Tue, 17 May 2022 08:53:55 +0200 Maxime Chevallier wrote:
> > This must had been asked on v1 but there's no trace of it in the
> > current submission afaict...  
> 
> No you're correct, this wasn't explained.
> 
> > If the tag is passed in the descriptor how is this not a pure
> > switchdev driver? The explanation must be preserved somehow.  
> 
> The main reason is that although the MAC and switch are rightly coupled
> on that platform, the switch is actually a QC8K that can live on it's
> own, as an external switch. Here, it's just a slightly modified version
> of this IP.
> 
> The same goes for the MAC IP, but so far we don't support any other
> platform that have the MAC as a standalone controller. As far as we can
> tell, platforms that have this MAC also include a QCA8K, but the
> datasheet also mentions other modes (like outputing RGMII).

Got it, thanks! Please weave this justification more explicitly into 
the cover letter.

> Is this valid to have it as a standalone ethernet driver in that
> situation ?

Quite possibly.. I won't pretend I've looked at the code, I defer 
to the reviewers :)